Pastel de Tres Leches or Three Milk's Cake, is one of the most, if not the most popular and sold cake throughout Mexico. It is also amongst the most requested recipes I have been asked for after Pickled Jalapeños and Piggies cookies. So dear readers, I am sorry it has taken this long but here it goes! I promise to get to the other requests, which I love getting on your emails, as soon as possible.

Tres Leches is a sweet, practically wet, homey cake. Its base is a vanilla sponge cake, completely soaked in a sauce traditionally made with three kinds of milk: sweetened condensed milk,
evaporated milk and regular milk. Some versions substitute regular milk with heavy cream. The cake will sometimes have a topping like fresh whipped cream, which I seriously consider of utmost necessity (!). Sometimes the topping turns out to be meringue or even chocolate ganache.

Growing up in Mexico City, there was a bakery called La Gran Via, which sold such delicious Tres Leches that even though it was far from home, we used to drive many Sundays to get one. These days La Gran Via has become a large chain store of bakeries... it has been years since I have eaten one of their cakes. This recipe, is as close as I get to my nostalgic memories.

To make the sponge cake as fluffy as can be, start by beating the egg whites until they hold soft peaks. Add the sugar and keep on beating until they hold stiff peaks.

Separately beat the egg yolks until thick, creamy and very pale in color and add some vanilla.

I really feel the need to take a photo of the vanilla and show it to you. It's Mexican vanilla from Papantla, the place where vanilla originated. And just look how pretty the bottle is...

...If I am showing you the bottle, let me show you the box. Because it is even prettier than the bottle. You can see there in the label, that the company Gaya, has been making it since 1873, with centennial traditional methods (I have no links to the company, I just think their products are outstanding). Its flavor and aroma, just blows me away...

Then pour the egg yolks (look at how thick and pale the egg yolks are after beating them for 4 to 5 minutes, that's what you want) with that hint of vanilla, onto the egg white mixture.

Pour it all on top...

Gently, with a spatula, in evolving motions, combine the yellow with the white, being careful not to lose much of the volume and fluffiness already achieved.

Once well combined, add the flour and incorporate it in evolving motions.

Pour that batter onto the prepared pan, buttered and lined with parchment paper.

It is a simple cake batter: just egg whites, sugar, egg yolks, vanilla and flour. But it turns out fluffy, homey and spongy because of the way these ingredients are used.

Into the oven for about 25 minutes, until the cake has a nice tanned crust, it is spongy to the touch and a toothpick comes out clean.

After you get the cake out of the oven, invert it onto a plate and poke all over with a fork, or two forks. You want to help the cake find ways to absorb the sauce you are about to make.

There goes the condensed milk and the evaporated milk into the regular milk, and a bit more vanilla.

Some modern versions of the cake add other kinds of flavors into the sauce, like chocolate, cajeta (Mexican goat's milk version of dulce de leche) or Rompope (Mexican eggnog). If you like a hint of alcohol in your desserts, go ahead and pour in some Rum or Kahlua.

Pour all the sauce on top...

Though not all versions of the cake have whipped cream on top I think it is of the most absolute necessity. Life or death. NEED it. Spoon it. Spread it.

The cake tastes much better when it has had a chance to soak in all of that sauce and when it is cold. So it is a good idea to cover it and refrigerate it for at least an hour.

It is simple to eat, simple to see, simple to make. It is a simply
unfussy and tasty dessert that is somewhat neutral, so it can take many
variations. Of course you can add some fruit on top or in between, fresh strawberries work really nice here, its your choice.

The fluffy yet completely wet cake holds its shape as
it gives in to the flavor of the sauce. The whipped cream, as you can
see, just needs, needs, needs to go on top. It makes such a nice
contrast with the wetness and sweetness of the cake. After you try it,
let me know what you think. Whipped cream on top?

TO PREPARE
Preheat oven to 360 degrees. Butter a 9 x 13 inch pan, lining the bottom with a piece of parchment paper cut to fit the pan.

Pour the egg whites into the bowl of your mixer and beat on medium-high speed for 4 to 5 minutes, or until they hold soft peaks. Slowly stir in the sugar and continue beating until they hold hard or more stiff peaks. Turn off the mixer and with a spatula, move the egg white mixture onto a large mixing bowl.

Rinse the bowl of the mixer and its whisk. Now pour the egg yolks into the bowl of the mixer and beat on medium-high speed for about 5 to 6 minutes, or until the egg yolks become creamy, puffy and their color has toned down to an almost cream color rather than a loud yellow. Stir in the vanilla and continue beating for another minute. Turn off the mixer.

Pour the egg yolk mixture onto the egg white mixture and with a spatula, in evolving motions, combine them into a homogeneous single batter. Do so gently trying not to lose much volume from the mixture. When fully combined, fold in the flour, scraping the bowl with the spatula so that all the flour is well mixed.

Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and place into the oven for 22 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. It can be a bit moist, but not wet. The top of the cake should be tanned and feel fluffy if you touch it. Remove it from the oven and let it cool.

Once it cools down, turn it onto a platter. Remove the parchment paper and cover the top with an upside down platter and invert again. The platter should be large enough to hold the cake and the vanilla sauce you are about to prepare. Using a fork, or two, poke wholes all over the cake so that it will better absorb the vanilla sauce.

In a mixing bowl, combine the sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, milk, and vanilla extract. Pour the vanilla sauce over the cake.

In the bowl of your mixer, whip up the heavy cream with the confectioners' sugar on medium-high speed until the mixture holds up stiff peaks, about 1 to 2 minutes. Spread the whipped cream all over the already wet cake. Then yum, eat it all up.

Comments

OMG - that looks amazing! I hope you will make it for me one day :-). I am not much of a baker but i LOVE to eat cakes!

It looks amazing. I am wondering if I wanted to make a 2 layer version with strawberries in the middle, would I soak the layers separately first, then fill, stack and cover with whipped cream? Would I be able to lift a soaked layer to stack it or would it fall apart?

I was a pretty good decorator of traditional US celebration cakes, but haven't done one in ages since nowadays our celebration cakes are always tres leches and I don't know how to make one!

What's your advice?

Thanks,
Mary D

Mary Deininger
| February 19, 2010 2:47 PM

Patricia the photos themselves look good enough to eat. I've never made a tres leches cake. Now I have a recipe. Thanks for sharing it.

Hi Mary,
You are making me laugh! Yes you can have one too! Do you live in the DC area? Just tell me your birthday...
A two layer version with strawberries in the middle is amazing. I have tried it myself. Just make the two layers separately, unmold, top one with the sliced strawberries and some whipped cream, add the second layer, then pour a double amount of the sauce, let it all soak for about 10 minutes and then top with whipped cream. You can then decorate with more strawberries on top. You know what? Just talking about it made me feel like making it myself!
Let me know how you like it!

Hi - I found a recipe for this decedent cake a couple years ago and I get asked to make it all the time, too. Hands down my favorite. I'll eat it for breakfast!
One thing I do with the sauce is heat the sweetened condensed milk until it darkens a bit and gets a slight caramel taste. Off heat, I mix the other milks and vanilla with it and pour.
...and definitely whipped cream on top. -Olivia

Olivia
| February 20, 2010 9:38 AM

Hi Olivia,
Oh my! That step of darkening the condensed milk sounds like such a wonderful idea!! Will try it next time I make it...

Hey Denyse!!
Yes it is MMMMmmmmmm!! That Mexican vanilla is just out of this world. The aroma when you open that little bottle just blows you away. And flavor is intense and rich. I have a couple extra bottles here... But I am pretty sure you can get it online...

Cake was fantastic! And easy. Kids loved watching the mixer beat everything. Husband and I both had doubts that the cake would absorb all the milk ("Are you sure you bought the right size cans?"), but it did. Only thing I didn't do was wash the mixer bowl between beating the whites and the yolks. If I had beaten the yolks first I would have washed the bowl to keep the fat in the yolks from making it hard to beat the whites, but since the whites came first I don't think it mattered. Thoughts? We ate it with strawberries. I will absolutely make it again.

Hey Kim,
So happy!! As for rinsing the mixer bowl, as you say, it matters more if you do yolks first, because then the whites can't gain as much volume as they could. And I love it with strawberries too. So much so, that sometimes I layer them on top...

We love Tres Leches cake in my family. It was the cake at my parent's 50th anniversary party this past summer and also the wedding cake at one of my siblings' weddings. Delicious! I can't wait to try your recipe, Pati. :)

Oh my goodness! When we lived in Memphis, I had a friend there give me the recipe for her "Coconut Cake" recipe. It consisted of making a butter cake, poking holes in it, pouring 1-2 cans of sweetened condensed milk over it, spreading sweetened whipped cream over the top, and then sprinkling coconut on top of that. I had NO idea that what I have beem making all these years is basically tres leches cake!!! I cannot wait to try an authentic recipe. Yummalicious. You're the best!

Oh..... Fujimama, that spin with coconut sprinkled on top and maybe even some coconut milk mixed in with the milk sauce sounds like a perfect spin for a Coconut Tres Leches. Will have to give that a try!

Definitely, definitely have to have the whipped cream. This is my favorite dessert by far, I cannot wait to try this recipe!! And my trick for a grown-up version is to add a shot of rum (Meyer's works well) to the milk mixture ... delicious!

Hi Angela,
It just makes it much easier to unmold. But if you find that you don't need it, skip it! Many thanks for your comment ; )

Pati Jinich replied to comment from Angela
| August 5, 2010 2:06 PM

Hi this recipe sounds delicious!! I will be making a 1/2 sheet cake this weekend for a bday party, do u have any idea what the measurements would be for this size cake? should I just double ur recipe?? Would greatly appreciate ur feedback I've never made a tres leches cake and I'm so excited to try your recipe! =)

Hi Liz,
Yes! Precisely! Just double up the recipe. I hope you love it as much as I do!

Pati Jinich replied to comment from Liz
| September 23, 2010 1:13 PM

Hi Pati,
I think your recipes are great! For our granddaughter's first birthday next month, our daughter-in-law has asked us to help her bake a pastel de tres leches (I've already purchased the Gaya vanilla extract). I know that you believe only a frosting of whipped cream will do; however, the party will be held outdoors in San Diego and the cake is likely to get warm. Any suggestions or should we make a different frosting? Thanks, A Loving Grandpa

Bill Groth
| September 28, 2010 7:11 PM

Hi Bill, Loving Grandpa ; )
If you make the cake ahead of time, and place it in the refrigerator overnight, whipped cream and all, it should last beautifully for an outdoor party!
If you want to skip the whipped cream altogether, but really there is no reason to, you can just cover the cake with thin fruit slices. And maybe drizzle with some chocolate syrup too!

I can not find the gaya vanilla extract that is affordable.
Everywhere i look,it claims 10 dollars,but by the time you add shipping it is over 20 dollars for a little bottle.
I just want to make this cake for the father of my child which so happens to be from Mexico.
I want to impress him.
Of course,someone can understand.
I want to make this cake for him by next week.
I am searching on internet.
What else is okay to use besides this certain brand?
I see a lot of "Mexican Vanilla Extract" claims,but i don't know if they are true.
It really is about price.
I want to pay around 15 dollars with shipping and all.
Please help.
Thanks,
Fiona Saavedra

Hi Fiona,
You can feel free to use any vanilla extract that you find at your local grocery store! If you find Mexican, great. I love the Gaya, but there are many more out there. So try to use one that is the Vanilla extract and not the imitation, or vanilla flavoring. Very best, Pati

wow u have left me with out words.I been looking for the real mexican tres leches.I love that i found u in ch 6, April 23,11 @1:30 pm.This is my cooking channel.Love cooking all kinds of resetas.I miss real autetica mexican comida and resetas.Thanks so much for sharing ur delisiosas resetas.im gona try all of them.This is just from 1 time i seen ur show.:)i got 10 resetas to get cracking,so exited to try them out.:):):):).

HI PATI I MADE THIS CAKE A FEW WEEKS AGO AND IT WAS DELICIOUS!!!
I WOULD LIKE TO ASK IF ITS OKAY TO USE CAKE FLOUR INSTEAD OF ALL PURPOSE FLOUR??? IF SO WHAT WOULD BE THE MEASUREMENTS... THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SUCH GREAT RECIPES!!!! BY THE WAY I LOVE UR SHOW!!

This recipe looks delicious but i'm wondering if the recipe stays the same if i want to make cupcakes or what would you recommend. Also i prefer my tres leches with less milk mixture therefore not as moist is that okay with this recipe?

Hola Brenda, You should definitely try this recipe with cupcakes! The recipe will stay the same except the cupcakes require less baking time. Also, you can add as much or as little milk as you'd like! Let me know how it goes!

Pati Jinich replied to comment from Brenda
| July 14, 2011 10:39 AM

THANKS A LOT, I DIDN'T EXPECT A REQUEST SO QUICKLY SO THANKYOU!!! I'M ACTUALLY MAKING THE RECIPE RIGHT NOW IN CUPCAKES SO WE WILL SEE HOW IT TURNS OUT!

Hi Pati! I made this cake for my husband's birthday, and I did it in 2 layers with whipped cream and strawberries in the middle and covered in more whipped cream. It was delicious, but the edges of the cake didn't get very moist with the milk. Any tips on making sure the whole cake gets wet, especially if you are going to be unmolding it and decorating outside of the pan? Also, I would like to make this again but on a smaller scale. Would this recipe fit into 2 round cake pans, or would I need to adjust and make more or less batter? What do you suggest for a cooking time? Thanks so much! Can't wait to try more of your recipes :)

Hola Sarah, I'm so happy you decided to make this for your husband's birthday. Thinking of all the whipped cream and strawberries is making me hungry! If you'd like to make the cake more wet, you can try adding additional sauce. Also, if you decide to use 2 round cake pans, I would double the recipe; however, it should be around the same cooking time. Enjoy!

Hi Pati, do you use regular full fat milk as the 'milk' you have listed or heavy cream? I only ask because I've seen several other recipes that call for the heavy cream as part of the sauce instead of regular milk. Thanks so much! I'm planning on making this treat tonight.

Hi pati!! I just want to say thank you so much for this recepie!!! Im 19 years old and have two years living with my husband and he's been bugging me about making him a cake of tres leches and once i did it with your recepie, he fell in love with it!!! We say its by far one of the best pastel de tres leches we ever tried.. Again thank you so much, your my hero!

Thanks for posting this recipe. My mom specifically requested this cake for her birthday, I had a recipe I had gotten long ago but lost in when my computer crashed and thus went on a cyber hunt for a new one. This one looks the best of them all. The cake part looks much better than the one I had (this one is much sponge-ier). I'll be making it today and adding sliced peaches instead of strawberry. Again, Thanks for sharing =)

Hola Monica, I hope you all enjoyed the cake! Many birthday wishes to your mom :)

Pati Jinich replied to comment from Monica
| November 7, 2011 3:11 PM

Hi Pati,

I am so so happy I found your blog. My mother in law requested a tres leches cake for her birthday and that is the only cake I have never made.

I am going to make your recipe in layer cake form and I received some advice to bake in a 9 inch springform pan, poke holes in the cake, drizzle the tres leches and then cut in half, add a layer of fruit and whipped cream, put the second layer on and then frost in whipped cream.

Do you think that will work? I am so nervous about making this cake. I am the baker of the family and bake everything and i just feel this cake could either be too dry cause i am going to be too scared to add all the liquid or it will be too wet and she specifically said she does not like soggy tres leches. Can you tell I am stressing?? LOL! Oh man. :)
Thanks again for your recipe. I will making it tonight.

Well I made the cake and it came out good, but I was scared to put all the tres leches mixture and it showed. I am def. making this again hopefully this weekend and will follow all your instructions this time..LOL! Thanks Pati :)

Hola Gina! What I can recommend is to make sure the cake is cool and to poke lots of holes in the cake before pouring the leches on top. :)

Pati Jinich replied to comment from Ginna
| December 9, 2011 11:24 AM

Hi Pati :-) I am baking it right now. I never have this cake before so i don't know how to compare it with other tres leches cake. I add some lime zest in the batter and thinking to add coconut cream with the sauce and add some peppermint essence in whipped cream topping. I will bring it to work tomorrow and let my mexicana friend to try :-)
Thank you for this recipe :-)

By the way, i was quite sceptical about the batter because there is no liquid in it.

Excellente! It's different but it was very good. My mexicana friend love it :-) She said better than the cake in Mexico :-)
The other friend from mexico and her mom who are visiting love your recipe. The caucasian friend wanted it for her wedding cake if she will marry again!
The added coconut in the mixture is a plus.
I put 3/4 cup of sugar in the batter instead of 1 cup.
Thank you again for this recipe. I will try your polvorones next time :-)

Hello Pati! I had an urgent question. Do you think Rice flour would go good with this recipe? I cannot use any type of all-purpose flour, my father cannot eat any gluten so any recommendations? thanks a lot! I love your show your charisma makes every show that special!

Pati this cake is amazing!
I searched all over the Internet for
An authenic tres leches cake
And yours was my choice !
I was amazed at how the cake can absorb
So much sauce and not become soggy!
I was nervous about not using baking powder
So at the last minute I threw in a half tsp
To alleviate my anxiety . I also bought and
Used cake flour before I saw your recommendation
To use all purpose flour. The cake was awesome!
I am making the cake
Again today and this time I will use all purpose flour
And no baking powder, As to follow the directions
Exactly.
Can u tell me why you recommend all purpose
Flour? Does it make the cake spongier?
Thanks for this delicious recipe, It will become
One of my staple desserts from now on , no
Need to use any other tres leche recipes
As this one is perfect and so versatile!!!

Hi pati. I really want to make this cake for my baby's baptism, but have a couple questions. The cake batter doesn't seem to have butter, oil, or milk. Is that correct? There isn't any liquid in the cake?

I made this for Easter, today, and everyone loved it! It was really easy to make (aside from separating the eggs,which I am horrible at). The only Issue I have with this recipe is the liquid amounts. I was pretty generous with the liquids and the cake still had dry spots. I would suggest 1 1/2-ing to doubling the recipes liquids. I added some caramel stuff to the sauce and it was great. Also, adding a bit of cinnamon to the whipped cream added a great depth of flavor.

Hola Drew, I am so glad everyone loved the tres leches! The cake is a dry cake, so to prevent the dry spots make sure you poke all over it with a fork and store in the refrigerator. Your additions sound wonderful, and I love to hear how people take the recipes and make them their own. :)

Hi Pati,
I am wanting to make this recipe with strawberries or peaches inside, but I am not sure how to do it. The cake is so moist that I am afraid to put one on top of the other after I put the fruit inside. How do you do it? I read you could put the fruit before adding the milk, but does is get moist in the bottom part if there is cream and fruits?

This turned out to be such a beautiful and delicious cake! I made the two layer round cake with sliced strawberries in the middle. Instead of removing the cake from the pans, poking w/ holes, and pouring the sauce on top, I decided to try something different. I cooled the cakes for 10 minutes, removed from the pans until completely cool, returned the cakes to the pans and poked with holes. I then spooned the sauce on top of each cake, covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated overnight. The next morning I made my whipped cream and assembled the cake (to remove the cakes from the pans I put them into a pan of shallow warm water for a minute or two and they popped right out). Wow!!! Yummy and very pretty too!

Thank you for the recipe, Pati. Sometimes I like to put cajeta in the milk. I also like to decorate the cake with shaved chocolate. I lived in Col. Parque San Andres, Delegacion Coyoacan for many years and we used to buy them with different toppings, including fruit, shaved chocolate, coconut, chopped nuts. I also think that if you have a nut grinder that grinds the nuts finely, that could probably be folded in as well.

I agree that your recipe is authentic. A lot of recipes for this cake on the internet do not separate the yolks and whites. Yours is wonderful. Thanks for sharing with us!!

Pati- This cake is phenomenal! I first made this cake for my boyfriend, and he loved it- it beat out his favorite local mexican bakery! :) I've since made it two other times, and it's been a hit! Thank you! :)

I will try this for a dinner party Saturday. Was going to make a buttermilk meyer lemon cake, but then I had this cake at a party a week ago and decided to change my whole menu to a Mexican theme just so I could make this cake. I can't quit thinking about it. However, I remember the cake being more of a shortbread cake, than a sponge cake. Is this because of the milk soaking. Also, will I be okay to make the cake two days ahead, and just frost with the whipping creme the day of? Thank you so much!

Hola Rhonda, Yes, the cake is a sponge cake. And yes, you will be okay making it 2 days in advance and then frosting the whipped cream the day of. I believe it is actually better to do that because it allows the milk to soak into the cake :)!

Pati Jinich replied to comment from Rhonda
| June 13, 2012 5:35 PM

I am a newlywed living in the east coast far away from our family. When my husband requested a Pastel de Tres Leches for his birthday I was a little hesitant because I am not the best cook in the world. But the recipe was easy to follow and the pictures were great. For the first time making pastel de tres leches, it was a success. The recipe serves 10-12 but we both ate the whole thing.

From a very happy home, thank you for this traditional and wonderful recipe.

I tried this cake today and I must have gone wrong somewhere because the edges of the cake turned out very dry and the overall taste was quite bland. Perhaps some advice and/or more detail on the ingredients (as in brands of milk and can sizes) would be helpful.

I love tres leches cake. This recipe is delicious! One thing I have done to "cheat" is that when I'm pressed for time, I use a white cake mix out of the box and then do the 'sauce' and whipped cream the same. It is still yummy, and it's easy for someone who isn't an expert baker. LOL! I like to use crushed pineapple between the layers with pineapple slices on top. The tartness of the pineapple goes well with the sweetness of the cake and tres leches 'sauce'. :)

Brandi
| July 20, 2012 1:57 PM

I have used this recipe once before and it turned out fabulously
The only problem was that I didn't know how just how much cake I was making and it was A LOT.
I want to make it again for a smaller crowd, does anyone have any advice for smaller size recipe conversion? I usually just follow recipes straight on so I am not sure about changing the proportions and all of that.

hello pati, i love your show. i'm trying this recipe for the first time and i couldnt get my egg yolks to be as creamy and fluffy as yours. its in the oven right now. i hope it comes out good. do you have any suggestions with the egg yolks? i beat them for 7-8 minutes and they didn't ever cream. do they need to be extra cold or at room temperature? :-( thanks for any help

Dios mio este pastel es un maravilla... I have tryed 3 different recipes which I tryed and were horrible and then I found yours pati and it wow me so much it's so delicious its just like the one @ the bakery I love it and family does too. My dad and husband always ask when are you making it but all I can say for this recipes yum..yum DELICIOUS!!!!!

I insisted that I make my own birthday cake for a work party because I really, really wanted to make this Tres Leches Cake recipe and I didn't want a box cake with hydrogenated oil frosting! :) It turned out AMAZING! I followed everything in your recipe, but used about 1/2 cup of sugar because I knew the sweetened condensed milk would give it enough sweetness. To top it off I put fresh strawberries and peaches on the whipped cream! Thank you so much for the recipe, I can't wait to make it again. My next culinary adventure is to make your Tamarind Apricot Chicken and Enchiladas Verdes! So glad I saw your show, you have so many awesome recipes I want to try!

I just discovered your show this week and watched the episode featuring this recipe. Thank you for explaining the difference between sweetened condensed milk and evaporated milk! I love Tres Leches and now I am proud to have a wonderful recipe of my very own thanks to you! God bless you, Pati! I am a HUGE fan now!

Patti,
I love tres leches and have tried several different recipes, but I wanted to make something special for my brother's rehearsal dinner (he loves tres leches, too) so I tried your recipe. It was great, really great, but the dead center of the cake was drier than the rest of the cake. Do you think it could have been that my pan wasn't exactly even or that I didn't poke holes evenly?
Thanks.

Hola Terri, You are so kind! I hope you enjoy the tres leches cake -- and thank you for watching.

Pati Jinich replied to comment from Terri
| October 17, 2012 12:39 PM

Hi. My name its erika & I just wanted to say thank you soooooooo. Much for this recipe. I tried this recipe for the first time a year ago & since then I don't buy 3 leeches cake any more!!! I'm always making this for any special celebration. The only thing the I change its the when it comes to the sauce I double the ingredients & I let it soak for at least 8 hours before putting the icing & it comes out perfect. I love when my cake its super moist & flavor full. I like to see the milk dripping out of the cake everyone love it so much. Great recipe & thanks for sharing!!!! :)

Recently, I've been hunting for the perfect Tres Leches recipe for an important dinner party. I found your recipe here and two other's online that seemed really popular. I made all three in one day. That evening i went to a birthday party and had everyone taste test and the next day (today) I drove around and got some more opinions (namely from my mother who is am amazing cook specializing in Cuban food) And I'm happy to report that your recipe took the cake (sorry couldn't help it!) Thanks for sharing it! I will definitely be using your recipe!

I watched your show when you prepared this cake, and I couldn't wait to try your recipe.

My egg whites got nice and firm, but collapsed after I added the sugar! I whipped and whipped, and couldn't get them to firm up! They just liquified! I had to add 4 more egg whites (beaten separately to very firm) and add them into the mix, and this made a very small difference. What did I do wrong? I was thinking next time I will add the sugar to the yolks. This way the whites can be beaten very stiff.

The cake came out good, despite the extra eggs. My family enjoyed it and wants me to make it again. Thanks for this great recipe!

Thank you for trying my recipe, Kara! I think the density of the cake is different depending on the pan. Don't be afraid to go crazy with poking holes in the cake and really letting the milk soak in.

Pati Jinich replied to comment from Kara
| November 5, 2012 12:58 PM

Dear Chef Pati,

I tried your tres leches recipe for a birthday dinner party I put together for a friend of mine, and it was a hit! I tried my best to do the recipe justice, and had my same birthday friend... who bakes awesomely , supervise to make sure I beat those eggs into a perfect cake. I must say your step by step pictorial of the look of the cake was easy and great to follow! I had great time making the cake and I did amaze myself that I could actually make this tasty Mexican treat, I even added Amareto to the milk sauce. Man delish!!! My guest ate easily two to three slices of the cake. I even impressed my papis! Thanks for sharing this amazing recipe! I LOVED IT! ( I even love your show on That comes on PBS, I try to catch it for new recipes on Saturdays!) ;)

Hola Shana, What a nice surprise to have Tres Leches Cake for Thanksgiving! Thank you for using my recipe -- I'm glad everyone enjoyed it!!

Pati Jinich replied to comment from Shana
| November 26, 2012 5:23 PM

Hi Pati, After searching for what seemed like hundreds of recipes for Tres Leches, I finally settled on yours. I was a little worried about the egg yolks because they never turned a light cream color, just a notch up from pale yellow. It came out wonderful so I must have done something right! I have to admit I never saw your show before finding your website, but last night I was flipping through channels and saw you make chipoltle mashed potatoes. So you can guess what's on the menu tonight! Thanks for sharing your awesome recipes!

Thanks so much for publishing this recipe! I will be bringing this to friends who are hosting a traditional tamale dinner on Christmas eve. My friend, who is from Mexico, talked about how much he loves, and misses the Tres Leches Cake from his childhood. I have been looking for an authentic version, and looks like I found it....many thanks!

Today I am making this cake with gluten free flour. It looks so lucious that I am just loving the creaminess. I am celiac and cannot have gluten flour but can work with recipies to get a good likeness of your original. Thank you for the wonderful Mexican show! I always thought everyone in Mexico were poor, What was I thinking. It has a great history. Loving your show!!! Susan

I just want to thank you. I watched your tv show on the Create tv show, and I was amazed at how simple "El pastel de tres leche" is to make. I tried it myself and it came out delicious. I will continue checking out more of your recipes.
Thank you
Andy
Massachusetts.